Thursday, May 5, 2011

Driver Chassis Selections for Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington

Note: Not all teams post their chassis selections in their PR releases

Does Edwards winning Vegas car make him a contender?

1. Carl Edwards: 13.5 average finish, including two top fives, in the four races with the COT; Four top-10s and an average finish of 15.6 in seven overall starts; Led 33 laps in 2007; Finished 32nd and 15th in last two starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 732) that he won with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March.

2. Jimmie Johnson: Second among all drivers in average finish at 9.3; Coming off worst finish, in 36th, after a crash took him out contention; Finish was second outside the top 15 in 12 starts; 13.5 average finish in the four races with the COT; Won both races in 2004; Fourth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 659) in the Showtime Southern 500.

3. Kyle Busch: Won the 2008 race after leading 169 laps; 19.8 average finish in the four races with the COT; Finished seventh last season for third top 10 in six starts; Sixth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 277) that he led 153 laps with en route to the win at Bristol Motor Speedway in March.

4. Dale Earnhardt Jr: 16.3 average finish in three starts with Hendrick Motorsports; 14.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Best finish in 16 starts is a pair of fourth-place finishes with the last coming in 2008; Eighth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 657) in the Showtime Southern 500.

5. Kevin Harvick: Coming off best finish, and first top 10, in four starts with the COT in sixth; 19.1 average finish and 16 laps led in 14 starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 304) that he finished sixth with at Bristol Motor Speedway in March.

6. Kurt Busch: 12.4 average finish in five starts with Penske Racing; Coming off best finish, and first top 10, with the team in third; Scored four top-10s in previous nine starts with Roush Racing; One lap led in the four races with the COT.

7. Clint Bowyer: 23.2 average finish in five starts; Best finish, and only top 10, came in the 2007 race from the pole in ninth; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 315) in the Showtime Southern 500.

8. Ryan Newman: 6.5 average finish in two starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; 12.2 average finish in 12 overall starts; Ninth-place finish last year was fifth top 10 in the last six races; 297 laps led; Fifth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 506) that he last finishes eighth with at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2010.

9. Matt Kenseth: Third-best average finish (9.0) in the four races with the COT; has finished 13th or better in the past five races; Won the pole and finished 10th in 2009; 17.7 average finish, seven top-10s and 154 laps in 17 starts; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 707) that he finished fourth with at Auto Club Speedway.

10. Tony Stewart: 13.0 average finish in two starts with Stewart-Haas Racing; Best finish came in 2008 in third; Posted eight top-10s in previous 16 starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; 13.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 640) in the Showtime Southern 500.

11. AJ Allmendinger: 29.2 average finish in four starts; Best finish came in 2009 in 17th; Has yet to lead a lap; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 729) that he last finished 14th with at Martinsville Speedway.

12. Juan Pablo Montoya: Coming off first top 10 in four starts in fifth; Finish lowered his average finish to 17.8; Has yet to lead a lap; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1105) that he last finished 13th with at Texas Motor Speedway.

13. Mark Martin: Won the 2009 event in first track start with Hendrick Motorsports; Finished 16th in 2010; Seventh-best average finish (11.8) in the four races with the COT; 10th-best driver rating in the past six races; 26 top-10s in 44 starts; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 656) in the Showtime Southern 500.

14. Greg Biffle: Winner of this event in 2005 and 2006; Eighth-place finish in 2009 was fourth top 10 in 10 starts; Second in laps led in the four races with the COT with 212; Second-best driver rating in the past six races; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 706) that he led 11 laps and finished 28th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

15. Paul Menard: 28.0 average finish in four starts; Best finish came in 2009 in 15th; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 328) that he finished 12th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

16. Jeff Gordon: Leads all drivers in wins (7) and laps led (1,720); Leads all drivers with a 3.2 average finish in the four races with the COT; Last win came in 2007; Best driver rating in the past six races.

Hamlin won at Darlington last season

17. Denny Hamlin: Led 104 laps en route to the win last season; Second-best average finish (5.8) in the four races with the COT; First in laps led (298) with the COT; 6.6 average finish leads all drivers; Third-best driver rating in the past six races.

18. Kasey Kahne: Three-time pole winner; Has finished 20th or worse in his last five starts; Two top-five finishes in eight starts; Ninth-best driver rating in the past six races; Will make first track start with Team Red Bull.

19. David Ragan: 21.0 average finish in four starts; Best finish, and only top 10, came in 2008 in fifth; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 711) that he last finished 16th with at Bristol Motor Speedway.

20. Jeff Burton: 11.9 average finish in seven starts with Richard Childress Racing; Scored 16th top 10 in 28 overall starts last year in eighth; Fifth-best average finish (10.0) in the four races with the COT; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 355) in the Showtime Southern 500.

Joey Logano (No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford)· Three top fives, four top 10s· Average finish of 14.0· Average Running Position of 15.1, 10th-best· Driver Rating of 85.1, 10th-best· Average Green Flag Speed of 91.036 mph, 12th-fastest